Field of the Disclosure
A subject matter of the invention is a process for the treatment of a metal material by a beam of mono- and multicharged ions of a gas; this process is targeted at producing varied and highly reproducible colors, as a replacement for PVD deposits, in order to decorate parts, for example made of steels or of titanium alloys or else of aluminum alloys. The process of the invention applies in particular to watchmaking parts in order to give them a unique esthetic appearance, both with regard to the sharpness of the patterns and with regard to the diversity and reproducibility of the colors. Mention will be made, among the watchmaking parts which may form the subject of this type of treatment, of pallets, wheels, hands, watch plates, and the like. Mention will also be made of jewelry or else decorative objects in the field of the art of entertaining (knife, lid, teapot, and the like).
Brief Description of Related Technology
The watchmaking industry has already, for a good number of years, been using the technology of PVD coatings for its metal surface decorations. The process is complex, in particular as regards the control of the thicknesses of layers for producing colors.